Balimund

Balimund is Riften’s proud Nord blacksmith at The Scorched Hammer, an Expert Smithing trainer and marriage candidate who wants Fire Salts for his forge.
“Nothing like the smell of a white, hot blade, eh?”

Balimund is a Nord blacksmith in Riften who runs The Scorched Hammer near the marketplace. He likes to talk about his work as if it were sorcery, and to be fair, he is good at it.

Where to find them

He works at The Scorched Hammer. The shop opens once he settles down at the tanning rack, around 7:30 in the morning. The basement of his house holds stacks of iron and steel ingots that refill once a month.

Quests

In Stoking the Flames, Balimund asks you to bring him ten Fire Salts to feed his forge. Once you deliver them he becomes your friend, and if he later dies you’ll get a small inheritance.

Services

He buys and sells weapons, apparel and miscellaneous goods, and trains Smithing up to Expert level (75). That makes him one of the better places to grind the skill if you’re based in Riften.

Follower & marriage

Wear an Amulet of Mara and you can propose to Balimund after completing Stoking the Flames or investing in his shop. Like other merchant spouses he can give you a daily share of the shop’s earnings. His adopted son Asbjorn Fire-Tamer becomes your stepchild as part of the deal.

Personality & relationships

Balimund is confident, cheerful and fond of the smell of hot steel. He took Asbjorn in as a boy from the orphanage and is training him to follow in his footsteps. That bond has a dark side for you: if you kill Balimund, Asbjorn will send hired thugs after you, mostly in and around Riften, and takes over the forge without offering training.

Good to know

  • After marriage he may not keep running a shop and only provide daily gold, and that gold may not always build up (Hearthfire).
  • If you live in Heljarchen Hall, he may only trade with you while you both stand in the entryway (Hearthfire).

Also in Riften

Race, level, class and factions read from the Skyrim game files; story details checked against community wiki articles and written in our own words.

Quests featuring this character

Side Quest
Balimund’s forge in Riften runs on fire salts and he has run out. Bring him ten fire salts for gold and the chance to marry him.

Places connected to this character

Heljarchen Hall in Skyrim (Hearthfire): homestead north of Whiterun near Loreius Farm – how to buy the land, its grain mill, resources and giant neighbours.
Riften is the canal city of the Rift – autumn forests, the Black-Briar family, the Temple of Mara and the Thieves Guild beneath its streets.

Factions

Weapons connected to this character

Armor connected to this character

Elven Armor in Skyrim: light Altmer armor, 58 AR for just 7 weight, forged with Elven Smithing and moonstone. Gilded and Thalmor variants, stats and locations.
Glass Armor in Skyrim: late-game light armor, 76 AR for 13 weight, forged with the Glass Smithing perk from malachite and moonstone. Stats, sources and tips.
Leather Armor in Skyrim: the best no-perk light armor set, 52 armor total, forged from leather and strips. Stats, crafting, where to buy it and how it compares.

Mentioned on these locations

Honeyside in Skyrim: Riften’s player home – how to buy it, Skooma Trade, 8,000 gold price trick, upgrade costs, housecarl Iona and the private exit.
The Scorched Hammer in Skyrim: Riften’s blacksmith by the marketplace – Balimund, Asbjorn, Stoking the Flames, monthly ingots and The Armorer’s Challenge book.
Sources checked: Skyrim game files (NPC records, factions, read 2026-10-11); Elder Scrolls Fandom character articles